By Costanza Genoese Zerbi & Associates  |  eXp Realty  |  April 2026

If you’ve been thinking about selling your Long Beach home and waiting for the “right time,” I have good news and a deadline: the right time is this week.

Realtor.com just published their 2026 Best Time to Sell report, and after analyzing eight years of housing market data from 2018 through 2025, they identified one specific week as the single best window to list a home in all of 2026: April 12 through 18. That is right now.

I’m Costanza Genoese Zerbi — the #1 ranked real estate agent in Long Beach by RealTrends Verified, Top 500 nationally for five consecutive years, with 575+ homes sold and over $485 million in career sales. I’ve seen a lot of market cycles. And the data behind this window is as compelling as anything I’ve tracked in years.

Here’s what you need to know.

Why Realtor.com Named This the Best Week of the Year

Realtor.com doesn’t pick a “best week” based on intuition. They analyzed seasonal trends across hundreds of thousands of listings from 2018 to 2025 and identified the week where four critical seller advantages converge simultaneously: higher prices, more buyer demand, faster sales, and fewer competing listings.

Here’s what the data shows for homes listed during April 12–18:

Prices are 1.3% higher than the average week — translating to approximately $5,300 above the annual average nationally, and $26,000 more than listings at the start of the year.

Listings receive 16.7% more views than a typical week — more eyes mean more competition among buyers.

Homes sell approximately 9 to 10 days faster than the annual average — about 17% quicker than a typical week.

18.9% fewer price reductions during this window — meaning sellers who list now are far less likely to have to cut their price.

11.9% fewer competing sellers compared to peak months later in spring — your listing stands out before inventory floods the market in May and June.

“For sellers, the mid-April window represents an opportunity to enter a market that feels more within reach for buyers while benefiting from a seasonal advantage in terms of pricing and competition.” — Danielle Hale, Chief Economist, Realtor.com

What This Means Specifically for Long Beach Sellers

The Realtor.com data is national. But Long Beach sellers have an even more powerful local story reinforcing the same conclusion.

Here’s what the Long Beach market looks like right now:

Only 1.57 months of single-family inventory. A balanced market needs six months of supply. We have less than one-third of that. Buyers are competing for a historically thin selection of homes.

New listings are down nearly 23% year over year. Fewer homes are coming to market, which means your listing has less competition.

Well-priced homes are selling in just 14 days on average. That’s a fast market for a correctly priced, well-presented property.

37% of Long Beach homes are selling above list price. More than one in three homes is generating a bidding situation.

Home values are up 7.4% year over year. Prices are not falling. They are growing.

The national data and the local data are pointing in exactly the same direction. For Long Beach homeowners, the convergence of Realtor.com’s optimal listing window with our city’s tightest inventory conditions in years creates a rare alignment that serious sellers should not ignore.

The Honest Caveat: Timing Is Only Half the Battle

Here’s what I tell every seller who sits across from me: the calendar gives you the best chance, but the strategy determines the outcome.

Overpriced homes are sitting in this market. Buyers in spring 2026 are more analytical and comparison-focused than they have been at any point in the past three years. They have done their research before they ever walk through your door. If your price is even slightly off, you lose momentum in the first week. And a price reduction — even a small one — signals weakness to every buyer who has been watching your listing.

Three things separate top-dollar Long Beach sales from listings that linger right now:

1. Neighborhood-Level Pricing, Not County Averages

Long Beach is not one market. What your home is worth in Belmont Shore is a completely different conversation than Bixby Knolls, Naples Island, Signal Hill, or California Heights. Each neighborhood has its own buyer profile, its own comparable sales, and its own demand dynamics. Agents who price with a county-level brush miss money — either leaving it on the table or pricing you out of the market entirely.

2. A Marketing Strategy Built for How Buyers Search in 2026

Ninety-five percent of buyers search on their phones first. That means professional photography is not optional — it’s the difference between a scroll-past and a showing request. Video walkthroughs, targeted digital advertising, and social media distribution are what separate listings that generate urgency from listings that sit quietly on the MLS.

3. An Agent Who Knows This Market at a Neighborhood Level

This is where experience matters. I have sold over 575 homes across Long Beach, Torrance, Signal Hill, Redondo Beach, Lakewood, and the South Bay. I know the micro-market dynamics that no algorithm captures. I know which streets command premiums and why. I know how to position your home to attract the right buyers at the right price — and how to negotiate from a position of strength when offers come in.

What Happens If You Wait?

If you miss this week, the market doesn’t fall off a cliff — but it does shift. Here’s what the data shows happens as spring progresses:

By May and June, inventory typically surges as more sellers enter the market. Your listing faces more competition. Buyer urgency softens. The 11.9% seller advantage in new listing competition that exists this week disappears. And the buyers who were most motivated — the ones pre-approved and ready to act — have often already purchased something.

Waiting is not neutral. In a market where timing creates measurable pricing advantages, every week of delay has a cost.

Ready to Find Out What Your Home Is Worth This Week?

I offer free, no-obligation home valuations for Long Beach and South Bay homeowners. Not a Zillow estimate. A real, neighborhood-specific analysis based on actual recent comparable sales and current buyer behavior in your specific area.

Whether you’re ready to list this week or just want to understand what your options look like, I’m here to give you the straight answer — the same way I’ve done it for 575+ clients over my career.

Call or text: (562) 221-4527

Email: costanza@costanzagz.com

Website: costanzagz.com

Costanza Genoese Zerbi & Associates  |  eXp Realty  |  #1 Long Beach Agent, RealTrends Verified  |  Top 500 Nationally  |  DRE #01941438